Page 21 of Unyielding (Poplar Springs #3)

TWENTY-ONE

DECLAN

D own boy. Down boy, I chanted to myself as I followed behind Shannon. Even though my hard-on was getting painful, I wasn’t about to give in.

The kiss . It made me senseless. Irrational.

I would have happily made love to Shannon on the roof of the town hall, but that would have risked both of our reputations.

Neither of us could afford to do that. I needed to be calm, rational, focused for the both of us.

Instead, I was sweaty, anxious, and horny.

“Well, here we are,” Shannon said shyly as we crested the porch at the ranch.

This shyness was a side of her that I wasn’t used to.

The Shannon I knew could hold her own in a room full of ranchers.

She could command the entire barn from the livestock to the ranch hands.

So who was this delicate creature blushing as she stared at me from under her lashes?

She was so damn gorgeous that it made it hard for me to stay in control.

I needed to keep myself together, otherwise I might do something I’d regret.

Kissing was one thing. I wasn’t about to cross that boundary with Shannon, not before I was sure of what she wanted and what the possible consequences might be.

She raised onto her tiptoes and touched her lips to mine gently and in spite of myself, I snaked my arms around her waist, bringing her closer.

Within seconds, she was practically purring against me, and I felt myself starting to lose control. She bit my lip playfully and giggled when I flinched.

“Sorry,” she whispered between kisses. “Do you want to come in and I’ll make it all better?”

I pulled away, hating myself for stopping her again.

“Okay, what’s going on here?” Shannon asked sharply, scanning my face. “You’re making me feel weird with this hot and cold behavior. Do you not want to kiss me? Was…” She flushed, looking miserable. “Was the kiss not good for you?”

I bit back my frustration.

“The kiss was amazing. And of course I want to come in. So much. But… I thought this was just a fun thing. I didn’t want to pressure you into more than you’re comfortable with.” I gestured to the door, and we both knew exactly what I meant.

“What are you talking about?” she demanded.

“You don’t date date, so I didn’t think it would be right to, uh… take things to the next level between us on a whim. I respect you, Shannon. I’m not going to get caught up in the passion without knowing what this is or where it’s going.”

She pursed her lips and glared at me. “If you really respect me, you’ll let me make my own decisions. I know what I want.” Her expression softened as she took my hand.

I held her gaze, trying to figure out a way to explain what was holding me back.

“What? Tell me,” she urged, bringing our joined hands to her chest.

It wasn’t easy for me, but telling Shannon under the glow of the porch light felt right.

“I don’t like giving in to wild emotions, you know? Bad things can happen when you let passion make your decisions for you. People get hurt.”

“Hey,” Shannon said softly, taking a step closer to me. “It’s okay. We’re both going into this as grown-ups who know exactly what we want. And I want you, Declan Morris. Tonight, it’s about you and me. Whatever comes next, we’ll deal with it together. Are you okay with that?”

I quickly calculated what might happen if I let myself go, if I gave into the uncontrolled passion burning inside of me.

The prospect was worrying. On the other hand, though, trying to tamp down what I was feeling seemed all but impossible.

My desire for her was so strong that there was no way I could ignore it.

Instead of answering her, I swept her into a frantic kiss, letting all my fears slip away.

She met the kiss with an almost frenzied intensity, and I tightened my grip around her, locking her in my arms. It was like she was hypnotizing me, like I belonged to her.

I walked her backward toward the door, never taking my lips off hers.

We’d both been waiting for too long, and we weren’t about to waste another second.

Shannon’s room was at the farthest corner of the house, set so far away from the rest of it that it was like she had her own wing.

Good. I had no intention of being quiet or discreet.

While I knew that she lived alone, either of her siblings or the ranch hands could come through the common areas at any time.

We kissed and fumbled with each other’s clothing as we headed for her room, and I didn’t pause when Shannon pulled my shirt off, then dropped it on the ground in the hallway.

The thin blouse she was wearing was so delicate that I was afraid I was going to rip it as I struggled to get it off her.

I was desperate to feel her against me, to run my fingertips along her skin, and explore every inch of her until she quivered.

I finally managed to pull the blouse over her head and sighed when she pressed her lacy bra against my chest.

That needed to come off too. Now .

When we finally reached her room, she didn’t pause, kicking the door open and pulling me inside.

She moved away from my body just enough to reach the button on my jeans, and I contorted myself so that I could unhook her bra at the same time.

The instant it sprang open, I slid it from her shoulders and gently cupped her breasts, letting my fingers graze her nipples.

I could barely focus on what she was doing to me, her hand trailing along the front of my briefs.

I’d never wanted a woman as badly as I wanted her.

Shannon got down on her knees in front of me and gave me a wicked look.

“Shannon, no, you don’t have to…” I started to protest even as my dick threatened to punch a hole in my jeans.

“Shhh,” she murmured, quickly pulling off my boots and sliding my jeans and briefs off. “I want to.”

The second I sprang free, she gently took my shaft at the base and touched her lips to the tip, flicking her tongue against it and nothing more. When I looked down at her, she held my gaze, daring me to glance away.

“You’re killing me,” I groaned. I was desperate for her to make the next move.

When she finally took my entire length into her mouth, I almost came instantly.

It took everything I had to hold back my orgasm as she dragged her tongue along my shaft, teasing me with light pressure, then more suction.

Light, heavy, fast, slow, wet, wetter, until my eyes started to roll back in my head.

It was too much.

I wanted the night to last and there was no way it could happen if I didn’t get her to stop. I used every ounce of my reserve and pulled away from her, then picked her up and threw her on the bed, making her squeal in surprise.

“Excuse me? Is there a problem?” Shannon asked, laughing.

“Absolutely not,” I growled as I climbed on top of her. “Except for the fact that you’re still wearing pants.”

I massaged and kissed her breast while I unbuttoned her jeans. My desire made me clumsy, like I was a fumbling high schooler in the back of a parked car. I forced myself to take a breath, to slow down and enjoy what was about to happen between us.

When she was finally naked, I dragged my fingertips along the slope between her hip bones, causing her to shiver.

I ran my hand across her low stomach, then along the top of her thigh, letting my fingertips tease her heat.

Shannon let out a shuddering sigh and raised her hips to push against my hand.

“You like that?” I whispered.

She bit her lip and nodded, so I let my fingertips trace downward and slip inside of her. I focused on her pleasure, teasing her wet nub until she was writhing beneath my touch. I was shocked when she pushed my hand away at what felt like the moment when she was about to let herself go.

“What’s wrong?”

“I want us to get there together,” she whispered into my ear, then nipped my lobe. “At the same time. I’m close, you’re close…”

I didn’t need any more encouragement. I leaned off the edge of the bed and grabbed my wallet out of my back pocket. The condom had been in it for ages, but it would do the trick. I slipped it on quickly as Shannon watched me, lying back on the bed with her legs parted.

“What do you want?” I asked when I got back into bed.

“This,” she said, pushing me down and climbing on top of me like the cowgirl I knew she was.

She straddled my hips and gripped my cock like a saddle horn.

I resisted the urge to flinch at the intense pressure.

Rising up on one knee, she held me tight and slowly dropped down, inch by tortuous inch, until I was seeing stars.

When she was fully seated, she started moving—back and forth and up and down—while she sought out those places that made her feel good.

I grabbed her hips, my fingers digging into her tight glute muscles, encouraging her to seek out her pleasure while a tight coil of need built up inside me.

“So close,” I managed to say, and she sped up.

I thought my brain would short circuit from the intensity.

I felt her shudder as she clenched down hard.

I shouted her name as my orgasm rolled through me like a tsunami.

She rode me hard for a few more seconds while she spasmed around my cock before collapsing on top of me.

I held her tightly and lifted my hips, bouncing slightly as I continued to stroke her on the inside.

Our first time together was better than anything I could have imagined and I was regretting not having more condoms with me—but I also knew that there were other ways I could continue to please this woman without them.